


Righteous

by Kiritagawa



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Gen, Persona 5: The Royal Spoilers, grey morality, pet death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-03
Updated: 2020-08-03
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:49:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25682302
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiritagawa/pseuds/Kiritagawa
Summary: Harships build character and you grow from them, right?Everyone is better off facing the harsh truth for that growth, right?...What Ren is doing is the lighter side of the scale, right?
Kudos: 8





	Righteous

"If their parents never died, they wouldn't have grown...they wouldn't have bonded with me, with us..." Ren mutters to himself as he walks down the streets of Shibuya. His ears catching every loud procclimation of false happiness. 'I got that raise!' with 'My boyfriend proposed!' and 'My arm is all better!'

It doesn't matter, it doesn't count. He needs to snap everyone out...it's what's right.

Then he hears a dog barking, with giggling following.

Curious by how loud the bark was, he walks over. A girl no older than twelve is sitting on a bench under a tree, while her dog lays on the floor. The leash suggests they're taking a break on a long walk.

"Cute dog you got there." Ren comments, trying not to see intruding. The wide smile on the girl suggests she's being affected by some sort of desire being granted as well.  
"Hehehe, yeah! His name is Pocky! He's really friendly!" The girl giggles some more. The dog looks up at Ren with big beady eyes. The amount of fluff in combination with the size and white coat suggests the dog is a Japanese Spitz.

Ren bends down to better look the dog in the eye.  
"Can I pet him?"  
"Yeah! He loves scratches behind the ears!"

Ren does as suggested and goes for the back of the ears. The dog's head leans back and closes it's eyes, content. The fur is soft and feels...well...real...why wouldn't it?  
"Do you know how old he is?"  
"He's five! I also know the day he was born too, the 26th of October! That's when my mother's friend called and said his dog had puppies!" She gleefully kicks her legs as they dangle off the bench.  
"That's nice. Do you have any other pets?"  
"Nope. I did have a fish when I was six, though."

Ren pauses, looking at the dog.  
"...has anything happened in the past year? To you?"  
"...huh? What do you mean mister?"

Ren goes to stand up and look at her.  
"Has anything happened to your dog?"  
"...Why would you ask that? He's fine, isn't he?"  
"Is he really alright?"

The girl goes silent and she stops swinging her legs.  
"This isn't funny, mister. Pocky is here with me and we're having a lot of fun. If you want to insult my dog, you c-can go away!"  
Pocky even whines at this, his ears drooping.

"I'm not insulting Pocky, or you." Ren shakes his head, then pausing. "Your dog...did you celebrate his birthday last October?"  
The girl sucks in a shaky breath as she looks to the ground.

"P...pocky..." She murmurs, gasping a bit.  
Pocky begins to flicker in and out of reality, like a dying lightbulb. His owner digs her nails into her thigh.  
"...N-no, mister..." Her voice begins to break. "P..pocky got hit by a car in August..."

Pocky gives one last sad look before fading away completley.

"...but...you don't need Pocky to be happy, right? You can-"  
"SHUT UP! I LOST MY BESTEST FRIEND! HE MADE GETTING THROUGH A DAY AT SCHOOL WORTH IT!" She shouts, barely keeping her voice together as she continues to stare at the ground. "IT'S ALL...It's all..." She trails off, her words swallowed up by sobs. She jumps offf the bench and goes to run away.

Ren watches as she dissapears into the crowd.  
His nerves shiver.  
"...isn't it right to tell her? Isn't it...?" His eyes trail to where Pocky was just a minute ago. Next to it is a small stain of fresh tears.

"...the free will to be sad...is that something most people want to live without...? What should I do?"  
Ren groans to himself. He stuffs his hands into his pockets as he walks off, mind completley occupied with his thoughts.

* * *

"Happy 6th Birthday, Pocky! Sit still so I can put your party hat on! THEN you can tear your present open!"

**Author's Note:**

> This is a bit of a vent fic for me. I lost my dog suddenly since he got run over. I've gained nothing from that experience, and in fact I might have lost a part of me. I love dogs, I want to pet every dog I come across. I want to love dogs. But...my time with my fluffball was cut short. He was getting old but he was nowhere near ready to settle and slow down, and still had bouts of zoomies! My time with him was not complete, which makes it hard if not personally impossible for me to move on and get another dog, ever.  
> Not everyone turns out better from hardships, not everyone is better off in a harsh reality. In some aspects, I see the choice to destroy the false reality as selfish, so I wrote this.


End file.
